Blossom
by yoyoquinx
Summary: Naruto drags himself across Konoha in utter boredom after completing his daily missions. However, he unexpectedly and fortunately comes across his long time friend and comrade, Sakura. This is a NaruSaku AU. Smut included.


**Blossom**

 **Notice:** I do not own the characters featured in the following, all characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

 **Yoyo's OP Note:** I've always and forever will be a NaruSaku fan. Kishimoto managed to disappoint with, in my opinion, a shitty ending and its horribly developed characters. He also succeeded in ruining the characters of both Naruto and Sakura.

So, this AU was created to partially make up for his mistakes.

* * *

 **Summary:** Naruto drags himself across Konoha in utter boredom after completing his daily missions. However, he unexpectedly and fortunately comes across his long time friend and comrade, Sakura. This is a NaruSaku AU. Smut included.

 **~o~o~o~**

"Mission accomplished, Kakashi-sensei!" The hyperactive, blonde haired, whiskered marked shinobi proudly reported as he firmly stood before the Hokage - his hands placed on his hips and chest out.

His former sensei - now the Sixth Hokage - Hatake Kakashi sat casually behind his desk which held several piles of both completed and uncompleted paper work... some of which he had never even looked at before. Resting his elbows on his worktable, Kakashi placed his hands together as he took an informal glance over at his former underling.

"Ah, Naruto," the man spoke beneath the mask on his face. "You're back already. Good job."

"Of course," replied the overly conceited ninja known as Uzumaki Naruto as he threw up a thumbs-up gesture, "That mission was nothing more than a piece of cake for me 'ttebayo!"

"I expected nothing less for a ninja of your caliber to easily handle a mission that involved helping an elderly woman wash her fiesty cat," joked Kakashi.

... _EH?!_

The Uzumaki quickly shifted from his previous overly confident demeanor before exploding on his teasing sensei, "HEY! MAYBE I WOULD'VE WORKED UP A SWEAT IF YOU ACTUALLY GAVE ME DIFFICULT MISSIONS INSTEAD OF THESE GENIN-RANKED ONES!" He barked, violently shaking his fist.

"AND FOR YOUR INFORMATION, THAT CAT WAS A PAIN IN THE ASS! I EVEN HAVE THE SCRATCHES TO PROVE IT-TTEBAYO!"

Unfortunately, he wasn't lying. The blonde had claw markings on his face, arms, and chest...hence the painfully obvious bandages.

"Look," the Hokage sighed before explaining, "ever since you and Sasuke successfully ended the war, tranquility has been restored across the nation. Things are not like how they used to be."

Kakashi was right, the era of today was nothing compared to the harshness years prior.

Whereas a certain village would previously hold bad blood and lock horns against another -often leading to wars and countless deaths - now, everyone, ninja and commoner alike, treated each other equally and respectfully.

Although the Fourth Great Shinobi War had taken the lives of many, it benefited the relations between villages as they had all cooperated in order to beat a common enemy... or in their case, three.

The Hatake believed the stubborn shinobi knew that better than anyone.

Naruto, calming himself down a bit, placed his hands in his pockets as his eyes shifted over to the windows to take a glance out at the outside world: children roaming freely while releasing sets of laughter as their parents watched and spoke with one another, villages purchasing from shops, and outside folk and ninja casually entering the village for either reports or casual chats with comrades.

... Yeah. It was because of everyone's hand in the war that all this had been possible. Without it, even with the powers he had obtained from the Sage of Six Paths, - or as Naruto liked to refer to him, 'Old Man Six Paths' - who knows what would have been the outcome; he didn't like to think about it, but he was confident that it wouldn't have been a good one.

"I know, I know," the teen ensured with more of a serene tone, "I'm really grateful that times have changed for the better, but with things being so awfully quiet and all, I suppose I miss some of the action."

Things were a tad bit uneventful for the young blonde. Usually after completing the simple missions handed to him by Hokage, his daily routine consisted of roaming around aimlessly around the village, often filling his stomach up on some Ichiraku Ramen - typically repeating the following morning.

This explained why the ninja constantly attempted to keep himself as occupied as possible: it was to keep himself fucking busy!

"Hell, I bet that bastard Sasuke's out there right now on at least SOME kind of interesting adventure," he went on, shrugging his shoulders and shutting his eyes as he casually used his ring finger to dig into his ear, "Maybe I should've gone with him."

"Sasuke is out on a self-assigned mission of redemption from his past sins," Kakashi responded, "It has nothing to do with us."

"Gah!" Naruto groaned, "I knew that! You sure like to repeat yourself, don't you?"

"Just as much as you like to complain."

Smart ass..

Although the whiskered young man had more to say, Naruto was aware that he would merely be overwhelmed in a wise-cracking competition against his former sensei. So, the only thing he responded with was an audible grunt of annoyance.

"Oh!" He shouted after an idea lit up in his mind like a light bulb, "How about coming along with me to Ichiraku for a nice steaming bowl of ramen, Kakashi-sensei?"

"As much as I'd love to, I must decline. I'm a tad busy with some assignments myself," respectfully rejected the Hokage.

Naruto began to groan once again, "Oh, come on. How about AFTER you're done with all that paper work?" He asked, "I'll wait."

"It will take me a least a day or so to complete everything here," Kakashi explained, "Perhaps some other time."

"Sure..." The disappointed ninja sighed in dismay before turning his back to slowly exit out of the Hokage office.

Outside of the mansion, Naruto stood by his lonesome.. again. It made him upset that he had nothing else to do for the day, and no one to share it with.

He attempted to come up with any possible candidates to spend the day with when the usual came to mine: _Iruka-sensei? ... No, he said he has to lecture some students today,_ he thought, _Konohamaru? ... Nope. He's on a mission.. AND IT'S PROBABLY MORE EXCITING THAN ANY MISSION I'VE HAD SO FAR!_

He began to violently scratch his head in stress and annoyance before shouting aloud, "DAMMIT! Why is it that everyone's busy and I'm stuck here doing NOTHING-TTEBAYO?!"

The agitated shinobi released a grunt before eventually sighing in acceptance soon after.

Placing his hands in his pockets once more, he disappointingly walked ahead to his destination, the Ichiraku noodle shop - where he would eat away all the stress and stuff his face with an outrageous amount of ramen.

Tonight, he was going home bloated, where he would then sleep away the day.

 **~o~o~o~**

Nearby, within the medical center, a fellow shinobi, and former member of Team 7, Haruno Sakura finished up with her daily routine.

Since the war's end, the kunoichi had spent much of her time here, helping her mentor and the staff tend to the wounded and the village's sick. Her progress had certainly not gone unnoticed despite the lack of need for her work to be watched by a superior, the former fifth Hokage, who had since passed the torch to Kakashi.

The member of the Legendary Sannin offered a kind smile to the younger pink haired Kunoichi as Sakura approached her.

"All done, Tsunade-sama!" She stated, feeling glad to be done with the tasks for the day. As much as she loved the work she did, the young kunoichi was ready to relax.

"You've grown so much, Sakura," Tsunade complimented, holding a cup of sake in her hand, "The villagers will definitely be in good hands with you from here on out."

A smile curled her lips as emerald hues gazed up at her mentor in awe.

"Thank you, Tsunade-sama!" She expressed her gratitude with a respectful bow before standing up firm, "But there's still so much that I must learn."

"Yeah, well, that's life for you - we learn and grow as human beings. Even at my age, I'm still clueless to many things. You shouldn't stress about it."

"Yes, Ma'am," The younger kunoichi replied, nodding her head.

Having successfully fulfilled her duties, Sakura removed her medical jacket and neatly placed it away before walking towards the exit and turning back to wave farewell at her master.

"I'm heading out now. Have a good night, Tsunade-sama!"

"Alright," the elder woman responded, "Take care, Sakura. I'll be seeing you tomorrow."

"You got it!"

 **~o~o~o~**

With everything wrapped up and nothing left for her to do, she stepped outside, stretching her arms with a slight yawn. Wanting to relax before heading home, she started in the direction of the Hot Springs feeling that it would be just what she needed after spending most of the day at the medical center.

As she progressed through the streets, a familiar face caught her attention from the corner of her eye: it was her former teammate and seemingly upset(?) friend, Naruto, moping around for reasons uncertain.

 _Naruto?_ she questioned subconsciously, raising a brow. _What's up with him?_

Sakura felt that the moron was giving off a strange depressing vibe around him. It was as though she saw a dark cloud hover above his unkempt blonde hair as rain poured down heavily down his head.

Tired of all of the confusion and curiosity, the kunoichi finally called out to him.

"Hey! Naruto!"

And just like that - oddly, the blonde teen ahead stopped his tracks and snapped out of his trance-like state almost instantaneous after hearing the dominant voice.

"S-SAKURA-CHAN?!" Naruto questioned, looking completely baffled as he looked into both directions continuously in an idiotic attempt to find the source of the voice.

"Is that really you?! Where are you?! Are you hiding?! Sakura-chan!"

"Turn around, Idiot," the woman announced, planting her palm against her face in utter embarrassment and slight irritation.

How he managed to get himself dressed in the morning, she'd never know..

He turned his head back and his face lit up in awe almost immediately - it was though sparkles lit up in his eyes as he took in his good friend's presence.

There she was - his angel, his possible savior from this thought-to-be dreadful day!

"SAKURA-CHAAAN!" He shouted in wonderment as he began to dart directly towards her like an insane madman: flailing his arms while wearing an odd, creepy, wide opened smile on his face.

"HAH?!" She reacted in mild extraordinary confusion, stepping her foot back an inch.

In almost an instant, as though it was an inner reflex, Sakura would tightly ball up her hand into a fist to violently plant a solid one on the center of Naruto's head: causing him to tumble directly to the ground as the impact quaked the scenery around the two, catching the attention of many of the now frightened villagers.

Smoke would emit from her fist, as did the now inflated bump on top of Naruto's head as his body remained lodged into the ground: his foot twitching slightly, a fortunate sign of life.

"WHAT'S YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM, MORON?!" She viciously growled, gritting down on her now razor sharp teeth as she looked down upon the fallen boy.

There was no response from Naruto other than audible muffles as his face had been point blank implanted into the dirt.

Sick of his nonsense, Sakura leaned down and grabbed the boy by the collar of his jacket: his tattered face exposed to be wearing a dazed expression as though he was trying to comprehend what had just happened. The only thing he was able to voice out were nonsensical mumbles.

"R-r-r-r-akura...chan... rakura..."

Damn, she probably hit him harder than she should've.

"Snap out of it, you idiot!" She demanded as she aggressively began to shake the young man with the horrified villagers looking on in the sidelines.

Eventually, Naruto had been brought back to his - somewhat - senses as he began to shake his head, his blurred vision fading away as his azure hues took a glance at the kunoichi.

"S-Sakura-chan..?"

"Yes," she confirmed before carelessly dropping the shinobi on the ground, folding her arms as he fell on his bottom.

The villagers although baffled as to what they had just witnessed, soon shrugged it off and carried on with their prior actives.

Naruto sat and rubbed the painfully knot on his head before glancing up at the woman, "Ow...," he muttered out, "Damn, you didn't have to do all of that-ttebayo.."

"Well, you didn't have to charge at me like some deranged lunatic," she argued with a huff.

"Yeah, heh.."

... Maybe that was a bit excessive, after all.

He formed a dimwitted smile on his face, releasing embarrassed chuckles while lightly scratching his whisker marked cheek.

Sakura glanced down, raising a brow once again at the fool.

'Yeah'? Was that all he had came up with in that pea-sized brain of his to pardon his behavior?

"Idiot..," she insulted with a low sigh.

Sakura began to think about where the knucklehead would be if she weren't around to knock the foolishness outta him every once and awhile. The kunoichi also subconsciously questioned what it was about him that prevented her from ripping her hair out.

Yes, Naruto's immature antics often driven her crazy.

But at the same time, she wondered if it was his immaturity that appealed to her in some strange way..

Sakura was not yet able to make some clarity herself.

"Oh, yeah!" The fallen blonde shouted, remembering his purpose for getting all excited in the first place during their encounter earlier.

Naruto stood on his two feet, dusting himself off and innocently poking his two index fingers at each other with the same silly smile morphing into a widened grin on his expression.

"Sakura-chan, would you wanna come on over to Ichiraku Ramen with me?" He politely asked.

"Huh?" The woman responded in a dumbfounded expression, "What's this all of a sudden?"

"Well, I've handed in my missions assigned to me by Kakashi-sensei," the teen explained, "I've got nothing else better to do today. So, I was just wondering if you wanted to spend it with me."

"You mean like a date?"

"Yeah. Like old times, y'know? If you're free, that is."

Inside Naruto's mind, the same words of plea repeated themselves: _Please say yes! Please say yes! Please say yes!_

As if the sweat bead trickling down the left side of his forehead wasn't obvious already, Sakura saw right through him: she was aware of how anxious was and had been, waiting for the opportunity for someone to rescue him from boredom.

However, unbeknownst to him, she actually DID have something planned for the day..

"Well.." She spoke softly, "I actually was planning on heading down over to the hot springs."

Just like that... Naruto's expression immediately changed into disappointment and he attempted to be understanding of her seemingly rejection to his offer.

There it went, his last chances of not having to spend the day alone. But it wasn't as though he wasn't expecting the outcome.

"Oh, I see.." He uttered with a solemn expression, once again placing his hands into his pockets as he began to slowly walk on ahead, "Have fun, then."

Sakura's jade hues glanced on over to the backside of the male as he sadly walked away. She didn't like to see him like that, as it hurt her on the inside, too.

She thought about asking him if he wanted to come along with her, but then remembered that hot springs weren't his forte. The Kunoichi was aware that what awaited him was something she knew he had been too painfully familiar with since his upbringing - solitude.

Sakura wanted to prevent that as much as possible. It was something that he didn't deserve.

"But.." The pink haired unexpectedly continued.

Overhearing this, Naruto halted his tracks and turned his head back with a questionable expression as he was met with a warm smile from his comrade.

"Who needs the hot springs when I could full my stomach up with some ramen?" She added, gently brushing her beautiful, soft pink hair over her ear.

Naruto wore a shocked and surprised expression on his face: His mouth opened slightly with his eyes widening.

Did she really say that, or was it merely his imagination playing tricks on him?

Whatever it was, the shinobi's cheerful expression returned once more as he immediately stormed on over towards the woman at break-neck speed. He held unto her hands as his star-filled hues made sudden contact with hers.

"Seriously?! Do you mean it, Sakura-chan?!"

Sakura was taken aback a bit at the sudden mood change from her friend moments before she formed a kind smile of her own.

"Of course. Who could turn down such a offer?" She asked as a series of soft chuckles escaped from her lips, "Besides, I'm pretty hungry, too."

Naruto's face was left in complete awe before he exploded in merriment, lifting the woman up from her feet as he embraced her as a way to express his gratitude the only way he knew how.

"THANK YOU, SAKURA-CHAN! YOU'RE SO AWESOME-TTEBAYO!"

Caught off guard from the unexpected action, Sakura's face reddened in embarrassment as she was carried off from the ground.

"HAH?! PUT ME DOWN, MORON!" She demanded.

Naruto followed her command as her placed her back on the ground. However, the shinobi did not cease from hugging the kunoichi. With his arms around her waist, he pressed his face up against her own with his grin still present.

This resulted in the jade eyed female's face to darken red as red as a tomato, if it was possible.

Something strangely warmed up inside of her stomach... It was strange, for she had felt the same feeling sometime before during her lifetime: It was the same sensation she'd feel whenever she was around her former love interest, Sasuke, during her early childhood.

What this meant exactly? Sakura was unsure..

"N-Naruto..!" She alerted as their faces continued to be pressed against each other, "Maybe we should get on going!"

Naruto blinked several times before parting away from the woman in realization.

"Ah! You're right!" He spoke aloud, reaching for her hand and holding unto it, "Let's go, Sakura-chan!"

Without a warning, the whiskered male began to dart towards the direction of the Ichiraku noodle shop as the pink haired woman tagged along with her hand held.

"S-slow down, you idiot!" She attempted to warn.

But it was to no avail..

Unable to control Naruto's excitement, Sakura would be pulled along as the two bolted towards their destination. For the jade-eyed woman, it felt as though she had just boarded an uncontrollable roller coaster ride. For the blonde, he could not hear her demands as all he thought about was the imagery of hot steaming bowls of ramen on his mind.

 _Ramen, ramen, ramen..._

The dashing duo would unknowingly pass two of their comrades, Shikamaru and Temari, without any sort of interaction whatsoever.

Both had been together more or so than usual since they had made their relationship more open and official to the public.

Coincidentally, they were also on a date of their own: To Shikamaru's household to play a little bit of Shogi - which happened to be the same board game he would often play with his former deceased sensei, Asuma.

Even though Shikamaru was a very keen player, he would purposely allow Temari to win every match. He didn't mind losing, especially if it were to her... Not that he took the game all that seriously to begin with.

The woman from Sunagakure turned her head, wearing a questionable expression on her face after spotting Naruto and Sakura fly passed both her and her partner.

"Is that... Naruto.. and Sakura?" She asked, blinking several times while watching the two race off into a distance.

Walking ahead, Shikamaru halted his steps and glanced back nonchalantly with his hands placed inside of his pockets.

"No mistaking it," he responded, "That guy is always up to something."

"Why do you think Sakura is with him?"

"Who knows? Probably trying to put up with his nonsense," the male yawned, shrugging his shoulders as he continued walking on ahead.

Shikamaru could care less about that they did, really. He was too tired to even hold the slightest bit of concern.

But Temari was no fool. She could take a clear hint as to what was REALLY going on...

Placing her hand upon her chin, she would release an amused chuckle.

"So, that's how it is? How sweet.."

 **~o~o~o~**

Meanwhile, the two ninjas eventually reached their target in no time. Whereas Naruto stood firmly, glancing up at the shop in a state of awe... Sakura stood behind, worn out as she attempted to catch her breath after such an experience. Irritated beyond belief, the woman suddenly forcefully pulled onto his hand; bringing him down to her level of height: She hated how taller he had become over her. The kunoichi pulled unto his ear like a disciplinary mother would to her misbehaving child.

"YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO GET CARRIED AWAY!" She roared, "IT ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE! MORON!"

"Ow, ow, ow!" He complained, "That hurts, Sakura-chaaaan!"

 _Such a child.._

The annoyed woman released a huff, shaking her head before releasing her grip from his ear.

"Seriously. What am I going to do with you?" Sakura asked, placing her hands against her hips as her brow began to twitch.

Naruto began to rub his now reddened ear as nervous chuckles were released. His bright smile made its return before humorously responding with, "Well, you could come inside and stuff your face with me-ttebayo. Because we're here!"

Suddenly, a familiar elderly voice spoke out to the blonde.

"Well, well, well! If it isn't my number one customer!"

Naruto turned towards the direction of the voice, spotting his old friend, Teuchi, the owner of the shop, kindly greeted the two with a wide smile on his wrinkled face as he stood behind the counter alongside his young and beautiful daughter and co-worker, Ayame.

"Ah!" Smiled the teen in response before returning the greeting, "Yo, Old Man! It's been awhile!"

"It certainly has," replied the man, "And you haven't changed in the slightest."

"Heh, likewise," spoke the shinobi as he took his seat on one of the open stools.

Teuchi had always been a close and important figure in Naruto's life, especially during his childhood. During those times, while everyone else in the village treated Naruto as an outcast, the shop owner would treat him no different than any other as he always kindly provided a bowl or two to the child in his time of need. Just like Iruka, Teuchi would always have a special place in Naruto's heart.

"I see you've brought a guest," noted Teuchi, "Why, hello there, Sakura."

Sakura respectfully bowed to the elder before she taking her seat beside her whiskered friend.

"Hello, Teuchi-san, Ayame-san."

Teuchi grapsed in the nostalgia from the presence of both Sakura and Naruto with a cheery smile upon his face, his hands folded together above his chest. The last time he had seen those two together was during their early days in the academy... but looking at them now, it had almost brought a tear to his face to see the next generation progress on.

"I remember a time where both of your feet couldn't reach the ground as you sat on these very same stools," the man commented with a hard laugh, "Time flies by so quickly that I'm unable to keep up with things!"

Actually, there was also a sense of deja vu on Teichu's end.

He remembered an adolescent t couple, similar to Naruto and Sakura in both appearance and personality once dining at his shop years ago: They too were considered to be the old man's shining pair of customers... That was, until, they were tragically taken before their time during the Nine Tails attack seventeen years prior.

 _Namikaze Minato; otherwise known as the Fourth Hokage, and his wife, Uzumaki Kushina..._ He reminisced.

Teuchi saw the deceased Hokage and his beautiful, red-headed wife within the two teenage shinobi sitting behind the counter in present day. He began to chuckle to himself; finding it amusing at how fate had a way of working.

Sakura released a giggle while Naruto remained carelessly slouched over the counter with a pair of chopsticks he had placed balanced on his lips. His stomach growled continously and uncontrollably... he desired FOOD.

Hell, the smell of the noodles boiling inside of the pots before them were even causing drool to pour out of the side of his mouth; much to the disgust of a certain Haruno.

"Say, Old Man, ya think you can fix me up with a bowl?" Naruto asked in desperation, "I'm dying over here-ttebayo..."

Sakura nudged his shoulder, disrupting the balance the chopsticks had.

"Show some table manners, Moron.." She growled underneath her breath.

Amused, Teuchi released a laugh once more.

"No problem, I'll get Ayame to write down your orders."

Obliging respectfully, the young waitress stood before the two with a notepad and pen placed in her hands.

"Good afternoon, Naruto, Sakura!" She greeted kindly with a smile, "Naruto, I suppose you want the usual?"

"Bingo..!" Replied the hunger-stricken male.

"Miso ramen with extra chashu," Ayame spoke, writing down the order before turning to face the woman sitting next to him, "And you, Sakura? What will you be having"

Giving off a harm hearted smile, Sakura replied with, "Just giving me what he's having will be fine."

"Alrighty, then! Coming right up!"

With that, the woman turned her back from the pair as she, alongside her father, immediately began working on their orders.

While the two waited, Sakura glanced over at the groaning Naruto as he anxiously sat awaiting for his orders to be placed before his eyes so that he may stuff his face with its delicious goodness. She couldn't understand his lack of manners... but then thought, _It's Naruto..._

Oddly, an old thought came across her mind; and that was her attraction to the teen. While he could at times be immature and annoying... he certainly wasn't the same trouble making child who pulled senseless pranks on the whole village. He had grown, both in height and in personality. She never would've thought that he could've made it as far as he did.. He managed to bring everyone's cooperation together to end the war, as well as form numerous of bonds along the way. Naruto certainly was different, but that's what made him special... That's what brought everyone to him. He wasn't like everyone else: Pushing through the pain and hardships in order to find a way, never giving up on his goal, putting his friends over himself. He was someone who could drive you crazy one minute and then someone who you just wanna hug the next.. He was simply Uzumaki Naruto, and that's how Sakura liked him best.

... _Uh-oh._

There it went again; the same warm feeling in her stomach that she had felt before. She still couldn't understand what was going on exactly, and before she could take the time to comprehend the situation, a voice called out to her -

"Sakura-chan?"

Sakura snapped out of her dazed moment and glanced over to the blonde, who caught wind of her trance as he looked upon her in utter confusion.

"Y-Yeah?" She responded.

"You feeling all right?" He asked in concern, blinking several times.

She released a nervous chuckle, "I'm fine," she ensured.

Yeah... Or at least, she WANTED to believe that she was fine. But in actuality, her mind was all over the damn place.

"Oh. Just checking."

Sakura slightly lowered her head, sighing in an attempt to cool her head and regain her composure.

"Oh, by the way, Sakura-chan."

She immediately turned to face him once more with a smile, "Y-Yes?"

"I just wanted to thank you again for deciding not to go out to the hot springs just so you could spend the day with me," Naruto smiled as he expressed his gratitude, "You're definitely the best chick around. Both cute and kind - that's a great mixture-ttebayo!"

Sakura's cheeks began to brighten in response, her stomach feeling tightened.

She was left flattered and breathless for several seconds before shifting her eyes off to the sidelines to avoid further eye contact.

"I-Idiot.. What's this all of a sudden?" She asked, her cheeks darkening even more, "It's nothing, really."

"Maybe not," Naruto responded, turning his body to face the counter as he glanced down at the chopsticks in his hand, "But to me, it means a lot. I'm fortunate to have a friend like you."

Sakura had no other response, her body felt numb as she felt her face heat up from the compliments thrown at her way. All she could do was merely smile kindly before facing forward herself.

She was definitely glad that she missed out on the hot springs, because THIS is where she belonged... sitting right beside the male shinboi as they await to partake in some ramen. The kunoichi was confident that there was no where else she would rather be than here. The friendship she shared with Naruto was one of a kind, and it was something she wouldn't trade for anything in the world.

Naruto was her knucklehead... her idiot... her friend... her... love interest..?

 _... Huh?_

Before the woman was able to dwell into her thoughts any deeper, their ordered meals would be placed before their faces by the waitress.

"Here you go!" Announced Ayame.

Naruto cheered aloud, "ALRIGHT!" as the steaming hot bowl had been placed before his nose.

The whiskered blonde proceeded to break apart the pair of chopsticks before clapping his hands together for a short prayer. He then dug the chopsticks inside of the bowl, grabbing hold of a clean batch of noodles and eventually slurping them into his mouth; releasing a satisfied hum.

The taste was truly divine.. No words would be able to describe the sensation it brought him. It was though the teen had been blessed with this bowl by the Ramen Gods above. Truly, he was not worthy, but he didn't give a damn. This was his moment, his meal of pleasure!

"OH, MAN! THIS IS AMAZING-TTEBAYO!" Naruto complimented before turning to the woman sitting beside him, "Come on, Sakura-chan! Eat up before it gets cold!" He advised with a full mouth.

Sakura turned to him with a faint smile, "R-Right."

She then proceeded to follow up by breaking apart her chopsticks and whispering a prayer of her own. The kunoichi held the batch of ramen in between her chopsticks as she blew off the steam and placed them in her mouth.

Those previous thoughts would have to be looked into at a later time. For now, it was time to eat. All that thinking made her even hungrier than before.

"Delicious!" She commented, continuing to down the meal down her throat at an even faster pace than the knucklehead sitting beside her.

Naruto caught wind of this. He had never seen anyone chow down ramen as fast as he could. He didn't take offence to it, no: In fact, the shinobi was thrilled to discover that he has a possible rival in noodle eating!

As a result, the blonde finished off the last remaining bit inside of his bowl before huffing out the steam and turning towards the kunoichi once again.

"Sakura-chan, let's have a ramen eating competition!"

Sakura had been gulping down the water from the bowl, but paused after overhearing the male's unexpected and random challenge. Her jade hues glanced over to him, raising a brow with a dumbfounded expression.

"What?" She asked, "A 'ramen eating competition', you say?"

"Right! You and me... chowing down as much ramen as we possibly can!" Naruto eagerly suggested, slamming his right fist into his open left palm.

"Are you crazy? Moron... There's no way I, let alone anyone existing for that matter, could beat you in a challenge that involved eating ramen."

"Oooohhhh... You runnin' away, Sakura-chan?" He teased, forming a mocking grin on his lips.

... It was like that, the atmosphere surrounding Sakura blackened once she heard his taunting words. He was purposely doing this to spite her, of course he was. But why? Did that idiot have a death wish? No one mocked the Haruno and then lived to tell about it. Did he seriously believe that she pardon him for this? No way. Absolutely not.

Challenge FUCKING accepted..!

Sakura remained silent on the outside as the Uzumaki pressed on with his mockery.

"I hope you don't mind if I call you Coward-chan from now -"

Without any warning, without a share of words, the woman interrupted the blonde's gloating by suddenly standing up from her seat as her hands slammed against the top of the counter. Such an action baffled Naruto, Teuchi and Ayame.

"Uh, Sakura-chan, are you OK?" Asked the whiskered ninja in slight concern as he glanced up at the woman.

But there was no response: Streaks from her pink hair shielded the sight of her eyes from those surrounding her.

It was total silence until suddenly, Sakura lifted her head and revealed a fierce and confident look on her face as she locked eyes with the waitress standing on the other side of the counter; frightening even Ayame a tad bit.

"Ayame-san! Five bowls for the each of us, please!"

This caught everyone off guard, especially Naruto.

 _W-Where the hell did this come from?_ He thought..

But then he slowly began to form a grin once again... The thrill he had so desperately wanted for the past few days had suddenly hit him like a sudden train: Oh, did he embrace it.

"Alright!" He cheered, raising his fists into the air. "I knew you had it in you, Saku -"

"No talking."

Naruto raised a brow in confusion from the strict words coming from the kunoichi.

"Eh?" He uttered.

Sakura calmly took her place back on the stool before glaring at the shinobi with savage eyes.

"This is a battle: You and I are enemies until said battle is over and one of us remains victorious," the woman sternly pointed out, "You do not talk to the enemy."

 _Man... Sakura-chan sure is serious about this.._ He shuttered.

But, that was exactly what he had wanted. If nothing else, it definitely pumped him up even more as his blood began to boil with exhilaration. He was determined on one thing, and that was to avoid losing and ending his reputation as the ramen eating champion throughout the nation.

Yes, the ENTIRE nation. Naruto would occasionally challenge those both inside and outside of the village to ramen competitions: Ranging from Kumogakure, Sunagakure, all the way to Iwagakure. Even challenging the Five fucking Kage themselves! He beat them all.

His most proudest achievement being defeating his longtime friend and rival, Sasuke, before the Uchiha parted from the village to venture on his quest.

And this? This would be no different... No different, at all.

As for Sakura, she could care less about his reputation.

All the woman saw as an outcome was her victory over the damn confident fool. Nothing was about to stand in her way. Once Naruto had taunted her, he signed his own death certificate. There was no backing down, no fear, no concern. The win WOULD BE hers for the taking.

There she sat, her elbows set on top of the counter with her hands placed together and inches away from her face.

Naruto could sense a dark aura emitting from the determined kunoichi.. and it sent chills down his spine.

Eventually, Ayame would deliver the sets of five bowls for each of the ninja; placing them before their noses. Teuchi would do the honors of beginning their match as the duo reached over and grabbed hold of their chopsticks, anxiously waiting for the opportunity to dig in.

The elderly man nervously stood before the young shinobi; he had never felt such a intense sensation throughout his body in his lifetime.

"Ready...?" He asked as the two remained frozen in their preparation positions. He gulped on his own saliva and dropped his hand downward and announcing, "BEGIN!"

Without wasting any time, the two ninja broke apart their chopsticks and began slurping away at the noodles. There was no time for prayer, and if there was, it would have had been before the challenge started.

In a matter of seconds, Naruto completed his first bowl and immediately started on his second. It was a piece of cake for him, nothing to stress about..

That was until, however, he took a quick glance over at his competitor...who somehow managed to finish off her three bowls. She was now on her fourth moving on to her fifth as she viciously chowed down with zero intentions of stopping.

This made the shinobi wonder if she was even chewing on her noodles... or just swallowing them whole. She was a friggin' monster!

 _The hell is goin' on?!_

The Uzumaki panicked: He hadn't expected the challenge to be this difficult. He completely underestimated his opponent!

What a fool he was... It was definitely a mistake on his part, but that didn't stop him. After all, his nindo was to never give up even in the most darkest of times!

Naruto broke through his limits. He began swallowing the noodles whole before moving onto the next bowl: This was something that he would probably regret later on... But that didn't matter now, because at that moment, the blonde's main objective was to be victorious!

NOTHING WOULD STAND IN HIS WAY!

THIS WAS AN OBSTACLE HE WAS DETERMINED TO OVERCOME!

Once the two rivals completed each of their five sets, another five were presented to them as they repeated the same course of actions.

Minutes turned into hours as the two still waged on; empty bowls now piled on top of each other while the rest were scattered all across the counter and floor. Teuchi and Ayame were both left speechless at the insanity that was their competition... Was it even a competition anymore? It couldn't be. No, not at this rate. There were times where the father and daughter believed one, if not both of the shinobi would fall dead from their stomachs exploding.

Night had fallen... and the battle was seemingly coming to a close with Naruto hunched over the counter, barely holding unto his pair of chopsticks which held the last batch of noodles from his final bowl.

Just the sight of the noodles made him sick to his stomach... the male swore to himself that if he were to come out of this alive, he would never eat another bowl of ramen for at least a week or so.

"Can't... give... up.." Naruto muttered, attempting to push through one more time to finally close off the battle, "... Must... eat..."

He felt like regurgitating... Even the mere THOUGHT of ramen made his face pale.

Just as the whiskered teen was inches away from placing death itself into his mouth, he took a glance on over to his opponent - who appeared to be frozen.

 _Sak..ura-chan..?_

Sakura dropped her chopsticks on the counter without making any sudden movements. This confused Naruto, and he began to wonder what her problem was: Was she giving up? Was she knocked unconscious from all the ramen? Was she- ...

... Then, horrifyingly, the Uzumaki heard a terrible sound; a sound he didn't want to hear.

A loud gulping noise was made, followed by utter silence.

Ayame, Teuchi, and Naruto both looked over to Sakura with muddled expressions.

Suddenly, the kunoichi lifted her fists up into the air with a wide opened smile and cheered aloud, "SHANNARO! I WON!"

The owners of the shop were taken aback, astonished at Sakura's prevail over the match. It was unbelievable; they had devoured a total of 350 bowls without breaks... and here she was, not even fazed from the whole ordeal.

Teuchi and his daughter gave the woman a round of applause.

"Wonderful!" Admired the elderly man, "Truly amazing, Sakura!"

Ayame followed up with commendation of her own, "Sakura, congratulations!"

Sakura gladly accepted the praise.

She felt more proud of herself than she had been in a long time. Not only was she able to fight through the unthinkable, but she also managed to beat the now FORMER ramen eating, undefeated champion - Uzumaki Naruto!

Speaking of which...

The victorious female took the opportunity to shove her win down the once babbling idiot. She turned over to the ninja with the intention of unleashing her triumph and glory.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THAT, HUH? YOU MOR-"

.. Only to be met with the embarrassing and ridiculous sight of a nearly half dead Naruto, who remained hunched over the counter, still holding on his pair of chopsticks as if he couldn't comprehend his lost.

"Hey, Idiot," Nonchalantly spoke Sakura, her eye twitching as she lowered her arms, "You alive?"

Naruto didn't respond... er, rather, he couldn't: All that was muttered from him were nonsensical sentences.

"Mama... no more ramen..."

He then proceeded to suddenly fall back, landing on his backside and instantly knocking himself to sleep.. much to Sakura's annoyance and disbelief.

"N-Naruto!" Teuchi called out in concern.

"Don't worry," Sakura assured, "He's only asleep."

She couldn't help but curl an amused smirk on her lips at the sight of the snoozing moron, placing her hand against her hip as she shook her head.

 _You're such a fool, Naruto.._

"A-Ah, I see.." Replied the elderly man, releasing a series of nervous chuckles.

Sakura turned her attention over to the old man behind the counter with embarrassed giggles and said, "Seeing as that knucklehead passed out, I guess I'll pay."

"That's not necessary," Teuchi kindly declined, "You two are special customers."

"Eh?! A-Are you sure?" Responded the pink-haired young lady, a bit shocked.

"Definitely. Besides, the entertainment was definitely worth it."

She respectfully bowed to express her gratitude to the shop owner, "Thank you very much, Teuchi-san!" Sakura then stood up firmly with a smile before adding, "But I wouldn't feel right if we were to leave you guys behind with this huge mess to clean up, though. Please, allow me to help."

Teuchi returned the kind smile, "Why, that'd be nice of you. I'd appreciate it greatly."

That being said, Sakura put an apron on and began working on washing the bowls both she and Naruto left behind. Naruto, of course, was placed on one of the stools by Sakura as he proceeded to count sheep, drool out of his mouth, and snore the time away.

Minutes had gone by, and Sakura had finished in lending a hand to the two owners. Hanging up the apron, she exited the shop, but not before grabbing along the sleeping Naruto, who she placed behind her back. Even though he was quite heavy for the average person, it wasn't THAT much of an issue for her.

She turned back and waved goodbye to Teuchi and Ayame, who kindly bidded farewell in return.

"It was great seeing you again, Teuchi-san, Ayame-san!"

"Likewise, Sakura!" Replied the man, "Be sure to tell Naruto when he wakes up that I'll be seeing him around."

"Right!"

Ayame waved both of her hands into the air, "Bye-bye, Sakura!"

 **~o~o~o~**

With all that said and done, Sakura walked out of the shop and into the night towards the direction of Naruto's apartment - where she could drop him off and have him sleep the last remaining hours of the day away.

He snored excessively as his face pressed against her backside. How unbelievable, it was like he was a child. But the woman couldn't help but giggle in amusement at the boy's foolish antics. She began to reflect on the day and how it was something she wasn't expecting but glad she received. If she would've had gone to the hot springs like she had originally intended, who knows how boring her day would've gone.

She couldn't wait to meet up with Tsunade the next morning and tell her all about this day and her success in beating the 'great' Naruto in a ramen eating competition.

In the end, Sakura was fortunate that she happened to run into this buffoon. In fact, he always knew how to brighten her day up even more.. That was another thing she loved about him.

Wait.. Loved?

Her face brightened red once again as that same stomach tightening sensation from earlier returned. But who was she to fight against it? Yamato was right... Sakura always had feelings Naruto, no matter how much he stressed her out: He was still her lovable idiot.

But the question was... How could she express these feelings to him? How would he react? Would he even believe her after the last 'confession' she made to him? These thoughts made her want to pull her pink hair out of her fucking head.

Meanwhile, Naruto began to talk in his sleep...

"Mmm.. Sakura-chan, don't mind if I do.." He mumbled to himself, eyes still shut as he was sound asleep.

Oh, HELL no..

God only knew what kind of dream he was having that involved her.. Just the mere thought of it heated her face up in embarrassment. She felt like tossing him into space, but held back her urges.

"You damn perverted idiot..." Sakura muttered underneath her breath, brow twitching.

Eventually, after leaping from one rooftop to another, the two reached Naruto's apartment. Sakura was certain that by now, everyone in the village other than them must have been asleep. She had lost track of time, but she was sure that it had to be sometime around midnight at best. Her parents were probably worried sick about her, but she usually came home late, anyways.

Sakura dropped Naruto beside his door as she searched throughout his jacket and pants pockets in an attempt to find the key.

"Come on.. How did you plan on getting inside of your own apartment without a damn key?" She quietly asked in irritation.

The woman then noticed the doormat on the side of the blonde's leg. She reached down and lifted it up slightly... only to discover, lo and behold, the key!

She planted her palm against her face.

Seriously, how could she be so oblivious to the obvious? This was Naruto, after all..

Unlocking the door, Sakura entered inside of the apartment with Naruto placed on her backside once again to shockingly find the apartment to be in good shape; which was EXTRAORDINARILY surprising coming from the whiskered idiot, considering he often wasn't one to pick up after himself.

Nevertheless, the Haruno was impressed.

She locked the door behind them and walked on over to Naruto's bedroom, carelessly dropping him on the mattress. This resulted in the Uzumaki to snap out of his 'fun' dreams and wake up in reality. His eyes were drowsy as glanced up to find the woman standing before him with her hands against her hips.

"Sakura-chan..?" He questioned with a mumble, rubbing his eyes to regain his perfect vision, "What are you doin' here..?"

 _Seriously? He doesn't remember? Figures..._ She thought.

"Moron..." She sighed, "I brought you home after you decided to pass out on us over at Ichiraku."

Naruto sat up and scratched the back of his head.

"How'd ya get into my apartment?"

Sakura rolled her eyes, "A doormat is an extremely obvious place to hide your key."

He dug into his ear while releasing a series of embarrassed chuckles.

"Oh! Now I remember!" The slow teen shouted in realization, "You kicked my ass in that ramen eating competition. You were friggin' awesome-ttebayo!"

A soft smile curled on her lips as her cheeks brightened, flattered from his compliment.

"You really think so?" She asked, tilting her head a bit to the left.

"Without a doubt!" He ensured, a childish grin appearing on his own face, his eyes shut.

Sakura could hold it in no longer... She felt as though this was the perfect opportunity to confront him about her feelings towards her friend. Her expression turned more solemn as she sat beside the teen.

"Say, Naruto.." She softly spoke, "What do you.. think of me?"

Naruto's azure hues looked on the woman in a state of confusion. Why the sudden change? It certainly was out of nowhere, but the shinobi figured he might as well shrug it off and go along with it.

"What do I think of you?" He asked, giving off a faint grin, "Well, like I said before, I think you're a pretty amazin' chick!"

"Is that all?"

OK... now it seemed as though things were getting a little more deeper than the blonde had previously thought.

"Huh? Why do you ask?"

Sakura shifted her gaze off the sidelines nervously.. She couldn't immediately find the right words to explain herself, nor could she have seen herself in such a position. But... Just like with the ramen challenge, the woman pushed forward on ahead with it.

"I've had these... feelings.." Sakura explained in a low tone of voice, "Originally, instead of understanding them, I kept them bottled up on the inside, but others began to notice and pick up on said feelings... comprehending them even more than myself."

Naruto's brow remained risen. Where was she exactly going with this?

"... But it wasn't until recently that I discovered how I truly feel about 'that person'... I understood it all." She continued.

"Well, that's great!" Responded the Uzumaki, giving off a supporting grin, "Have you decided to tell them about how you really feel?"

"Yes, I have.."

"Awesome! What's he like?"

Sakura formed an amused smile, finding it adorable yet typical of Naruto not being able to get the hint.

"Well.." She chuckled, "He's an idiot who always does reckless things... and can, at times, act like an immature child. But, no matter what, he always puts his friends before himself and is a person who's always a cheer to be around, even when he can drive you crazy. He never allows anyone to bring him down. He's always determined to fight until the end."

Naruto, still oblivious, retained his smile.

"He sounds like one hell of a guy," he replied, appearing to be a bit admired of the person being described, "Hey, do I know him?"

"You sure do.. You've known him throughout your whole life."

"My whole life..?"

Naruto placed his index finger and thumb beneath his chin as he attempted to uncover which 'person' Sakura was talking about..

Then, that's when a possible candidate came to his obnoxious mind: Someone who is always cheerful, someone who he's known for at least MOST of his life, does reckless things, and is always up for a fight!

"Hey, hey, Sakura-chan! Are you talkin' about Lee?"

...

 _HAH?!_

Sakura's body tensed up in disgust at the mere thought of Rock Lee approaching her for kiss. As payback for putting said scenario in her mind, the kunoichi would knock her fist upside Naruto's dimwitted head.

"NO! IDIOT!"

"OUUUCH!" He reacted in pain, rubbing his head soon after, "Then who are ya talking about?"

Sakura released a sigh. How could he STILL be so clueless?

"His name... is Uzumaki Naruto."

And that's where Naruto's world suddenly came to a stop: His face looked utterly baffled with his eyes widened completely. He didn't understand, nor could he grasp how that could even be possible. It didn't make sense and attempting to connect the dots strained his brain.

"Sakura-chan... What do you mean?" The Uzumaki asked.

"It's just as I said... I love you, Naruto," the Haruno confirmed, "And yes.. this is the honest truth."

"B-But, I don't understand! What about Sasuke?! Aren't ya in love with him?!"

Sakura locked hues with her friend as she wore an earnest expression.

"The feelings that I had for Sasuke are long gone, Naruto. I'm glad that he's finally returned to us after so long... But that doesn't change the damage he's done in the past," the woman scuffed, "Do you understand?"

Naruto was left completely dumbfounded...

 _All this time I thought Sakura-chan was still all for the guy... But she isn't kidding around,_ he thought.

"Do you have anything to say?" Asked the kunoichi.

"Well..." He spoke softly, folding his arms above his chest, "This is all new information just being thrown at me. It feels like this day, this moment in particular, is just another one of my dreams."

Sakura thought of pinching and pulling on one of his cheeks to make him realize that this indeed was not another one of his fantasized dreams. But, she digressed.

Naruto's cheeks began to brighten up slightly as he lightly scratched his whiskered cheek, "Truth be told, I'm actually really happy-ttebayo." He laughed.

The Uzumaki proceeded to reach for the woman's hand, tightly holding unto it as if to prevent her from drifting away.

"Sakura-chan... I think you already know my feelings for you," he continued, "And even though I might look like a repetitive dumbass, I could care less."

The Haruno's heart began to beat rapidly, she had never been put into such a position before. The tightening feeling in her stomach began to worsen as her heart felt as though it would fly out of her chest: Her face heated up tremendously.

"You're a badass chick who's not only a babe, but strong as hell, too!"

Sakura gently brushed the streaks of her hair over her ear, glancing down at the ground upon being complimented, "Don't say such things, Idiot.."

Naruto would give off an amused yet faint smile before adding on, "... And you're someone... who's very important to me. Someone whose voice and presence always manages to put me at ease, y'know? Even when you're beating the hell outta me." He laughed.

The kunoichi would playfully nudge his shoulder in response, tightening the grip on his hand.

Sakura finally did it, she confessed.. and in doing so, the tightening feeling in her stomach suddenly vanished, as well. The Haruno was at ease.. and felt there was no other place she would rather be than right here with him.

"Hey," Naruto spoke, "Does this mean you're my... uh, y'know, girlfriend now?" He nervously asked.

Amused, Sakura would lean her body forward and softly press her lips against his own; much to the unexpected surprise from the Uzumaki. The kiss lasted several seconds before she pulled herself back at mere inches away from his face.

"Does that answer your question?" She asked with a faint whisper.

Naruto was left with an extremely shocked expression... No words could express how fucking awesome that was. But, he did it the only way he knew how:

"HELL YEEEAAH!" He celebrated by raising his fists high into the air, much to the amusement of his now significant other.

At that moment, the blonde shinobi felt as though he was at the top of the world. His dreams had finally come true!

HE HAD FINALLY HAD HIS FIRST KISS!

 **~o~o~o~**

Suddenly, a deep, monstrous voice intruded on the teen's fun: It was the Nine Tailed Fox himself, Kurama, laying dormant in Naruto's conscious.

"Hey, hey, now. As I recall, Sasuke was your first kiss," the beast jokingly reminded, "Are you cheatin' on him?"

Naruto stood within his own subconscious before furiously turning to face the joke-cracking demon after being reminded of that horrible.. 'incident' five years ago.

"SHADDUP! WHO ASKED YOU ANYWAYS-TTEBAYO?!" Raged the teen.

Kurama merely laughed, "At least now I know you don't completely swing that way."

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN 'COMPLETELY'?!"

"Listen. How about focus less on me and more on what's happening out there?"

Naruto growled and turned away from the beast, folding his arms in annoyance.

"Hmph! You're just sour that you aren't getting any." He huffed.

"Human women ain't my thing," The fox clarified, "Too small, fragile, and they smell."

The Uzumaki formed a wide, dimwitted grin.

"Yeah. Who needs 'em when you have me, right?"

"You're the worst of them all..." Kurama scoffed.

 **~o~o~o~**

Outside, Naruto glanced on over to the open window in his room and caught notice of how dark it was. His azure eyes shifted over to the alarm clock placed on top of the drawer next to his bed. Damn, it was midnight already? Time had sure gone by, especially with all the fun he's had throughout the day: The blonde still found it funny how his day took a direct turn from potentially being the most boring day into one of his most exciting.

So much had happened in one day that he was still trying to comprehend it all. Not only did he go on a date, in which he got his ass handed to him in a ramen eating competition, but he finally got with the girl of his dreams.. He couldn't believe it; it was simply too good to be true.

Speaking of which..

Naruto turned to face his lover with a nervous smile, lightly scratching his cheek once again as if he had something on his mind; much to the curiosity of Sakura.

"Say, Sakura-chan.." He spoke.

"Yes?" She asked, raising a brow.

"Seein' how it how late it is and all.. Do you wanna stay the night?" Asked the shinobi, "If not, I could gladly walk you home or something."

That was certainly sudden for the kunoichi... but Sakura did catch wind of how late it was, and certainly her parents must have had been asleep by now. Surely they would understand if she were to spend one night away from her home under such circumstances.

"Aren't you sweet?" She remarked with a warm smile, "That sounds fine with me."

Naruto's expression lit up: _She actually said yes!_

His day was just getting better and better. This would definitely be one hell of an experience for him, as he never had anyone spend the night with him before. He couldn't help but feel overwhelming happy on the inside, as he was used to always being alone. It certainly felt nice.

"Alright!" He grinned.

Naruto stood up from his bed and walked over to his clothes drawer, pulling out a black tank-top with a cartoonish frog imprinted on the center, a pair of plaid boxers, and some dark sweats for Sakura; grabbing a simple boxers and an orange tank-top for himself.

He tossed the clothes over to his lover with the smile never ceasing to fade away from his face.

"Here you go," he said.

Sakura held up the tank top with the poorly drawn character on the center: Its eyes were bulging out of its head while giving off a wide, goofy smile. Of course Naruto would wear something of the sort.. She couldn't help but giggle in amusement.

"Nice frog.." She joked.

"Hm?" He glanced on over at her yet again, "Oh, that's actually my favorite shirt. Ero-sennin bought it for me years ago."

"Jiraiya-sama?" Sakura blinked.

Naruto nodded, "Yep. I've outgrown it, though. So, I'm giving it to you-ttebayo."

Her cheeks brightened as she held unto the gift tightly against her chest.

"Thank you, Naruto."

"No problem!"

Naruto then proceeded to remove his orange jacket as well as the black shirt underneath, carelessly tossing them both to the side as his bare, muscular chest was now exposed for the Haruno to see. Her body tensed up as her face began to heat up once again: It was as though she was in some kind of trance... hypnotised from the siight of his body.

The woman tried with all her might to hold back the incoming nosebleed.

 _T-That idiot...! He's doing this on purpose, isn't he?_

"You OK?" Asked the blonde, who noticed the woman's awkward demeanor.

Sakura wouldn't utter a single word; she remained silent, much to the confusion of the male standing before her.

Was she feeling all right? Naruto figured that ramen must have had finally caught up to her. He figured as much, seeing as she managed to go this long without feeling sick to her stomach.

The blue eyed ninja shrugged it off and began to step away from the bedroom into the direction of the bathroom where he could get a nice, steaming hot shower.

However, he felt a sudden force pulling him back, preventing him from moving any further.

"Eh?" Naruto turned his head to find Sakura, now standing and holding unto his arm.

 _The hell?_

He examined her expression, as strands of from her hair shielded her eyes. The Uzumaki was left utterly clueless: Was she upset? Had he done or said something wrong? Did she want to take a shower before him?

Suddenly, the silent Sakura tugged Naruto's arm and tossed him back unto his mattress without explanation. This resulted in the male to lose grip of his newly picked clothes in the process as they fell onto the ground.

Naruto landed on his backside and rubbed the back of his head, wondering what the hell this was all about.

"What'd you do that for, Sakura-chan?" He complained.

Again, there was no response as Sakura firmly stood at the far end of the bed. Naruto glanced over with an oblivious look on his face, his eyebrow raised.

 _What's this all ab-_

Before he had the chance to think out the situation, the Haruno began to slowly crawl up towards him in a seductive manner until her body hovered over his own. Naruto's heart began to beat nonstop..

What was this all of a sudden? It was like a scenario completely ripped out from one of his perverted dreams - something he thought would never happen in a million years.

"Naruto.." Sakura finally spoke with a lustful tone of voice, her faces merely inches away from his, "There are 'other feelings' I haven't told you about, you know... and I have no intention of expressing them with mere words."

"Sa..ku..." He uttered softly, eyes widened as his hues looked upward to her as his cheeks began to brighten red.

The kunoichi used her index finger to gently twirl around his built chest.

".. So, I'll just explain them to you with actions instead." She continued with a playful attitude.

 _Is this seriously happening right now?_ He subconsciously asked.

With that, Sakura sat up above his pelvis and slowly began to lift up her shirt, revealing her black bra as the breathless Naruto laid to watch in both disbelief and enjoyment: He felt his manhood beginning to slowly bulge-up inside of his pants.

Looking down upon her aroused lover, the seductive woman curled a faint smile on her lips before eventually unhooking the mere thing that shielded the upper part of her womanly body.

Once detached, Sakura decided to tease the blonde a bit by using her right arm to shield her chest away from his sight after tossing the bra off the other end of the room.

"Sakura-chaaan..." Naruto whined.

Satisifed, the woman released a soft chuckle and slowly lowered her arm, finally exposing her beautiful, round and perky breasts as the mere sight took the male's breath away. His dreams toppled in comparison to the actual thing: They were everything he had imagined and more.

 _Sakura-chan's..._

Sakura proceeded to lean downward and give her partner a passionate kiss, their unclothed, naked chests now pressed up against each other.

Her tongue swirled with his as she released a set of low, satisfied moans inside of his mouth.

Naruto, finally giving into temptation, locked his arms around her waist and sat up. With Sakura embraced, the blonde laid soft pecks across her neck until he eventually reached her left breast.

Without warning, Naruto used his wet tongue to slowly drag and swirl across and around her areola; this caused Sakura to wince at the pleasurable sensation as a result.

Successfully hardening her nipples, the shinobi took the opportunity to gently bite down, suck and tug on her tender breast. Her moans were now at a much louder tone: This was music to the blonde's ears; he yearned for pleasured sound of his lover.

"Delicious..." He playfully commented.

Eventually, Naruto would pull away, but not before resting several soft kisses around her now slavia riddled chest while leaving Sakura to pant and catch her breath from the breathtaking experience.

Naruto rested Sakura's back up against the mattress. With his face above hers, he'd give her a relaxing smile while lowering his hand across her smooth stomach, eventually reached the most sacred part of her body.

Alarmed, Sakura's face darkened red, "H-Hey..!"

Before she could say anymore, the Uzumaki would once again give the aroused kunoichi a deepened kiss in a successful attempt at silencing her.

Seconds later, he partially broke away from her mouth and whispered, "Just relax, Sakura-chan.."

With his ensuring words, Naruto slipped his left hand underneath both her pants and panties, using his index and middle finger to fondle her soaked womanhood.

"Wet already?" He teasingly asked with a chuckle.

Sakura's body trembled at the overwhelming gratification as a response; her hands tightly gripping unto the bed sheets. Her legs spread themselves apart, allowing her man more access.

The Haruno never had anyone touch her in that spot before apart from herself on occasion.. Yet here he was, pleasuring her like some kind of professional.

She continued to pant heavily as Naruto used a sample of her fluids to gently rub against her clitoris - her most sensitive spot. He would then proceed to insert his two fingers inside, getting more of a better feeling of her tight walls.

"Hng..!" Muttered the woman.

This drove Sakura absolutely crazy; giving her goosebumps all throughout her body. She had no idea this kind of sensation existed.. She heard stories from Ino, but experiencing it herself was entirely different.

While preforming this action, Naruto would have another taste of her delicate breasts as though he couldn't get enough. This merely increased the incredible feeling for the Haruno.

Minutes later, the shinobi removed his fingers - which by then had been riddled with her juices - and desired a different kind of flavor. He moved downward, giving her stomach a quick soft kiss on his way down.

"What.. are you up to...?" The kunoichi panted.

Without an exchange of words, Naruto proceeded to pull off her pants with a somewhat devious smile; revealing her now soaked, dark panties which complemented the bra from earlier.

Doing away with her pants, the pleasuring ninja continued by slowly slipping off the last bit of underclothing from Sakura.

Naruto took in the moment as her entire body was now exposed for him to see and enjoy... as much as he wanted, how he wanted.

Sakura couldn't believe such an event was happening. It was all too surreal and a tad bit embarrassing, for this was the first time that any man had seen her in such a state.

"I-Idiot..!" Insulted the blushing woman, "Don't look at me like that.."

The Uzumaki merely grinned before spreading her legs apart once more; getting an even better view of the enchanting sight.

Naruto lowered himself down to the level of her vagina, using the same index finger to slowly run down the lips before inserting it inside.

Sakura's body jerked back as a response; her hands clenching down on the fabric of the sheets. More feminine moans continously escaped from her lips, much to the amusement and slight surprise of the male.

 _Sakura-chan sounds more girly.. She's must be really liking this._

Adding onto the pleasure, Naruto began to use his tongue to swirl around and lick her clitoris while simultaneously roughly massaging her breast with his free hand.

This was too much for Sakura... She felt as though she would burst at any given moment. The kunoichi began to wonder how he could be so good at pleasuring a woman like this.

Unbeknownst to her, however, the shinobi had been given some pointers on how to handle a woman in bed from his former perverted master, Jiraiya. That, as well as reading some of sage's explicit writing.

Naruto suddenly stopped and stood on his knees, much to the confusion of Sakura.

He couldn't hold back anymore.

She innocently looked up at him, the shade of pink never ceasing to fade away from her cheeks.

"What's wrong..?" Asked the woman.

"Sakura-chan..."

Unexpectedly, the Uzumaki began to unzip the flyer from his pants, pulling them off completely immediately after; revealing his boxers and a noticable erection underneath. Streaks from his unkempt hair fell over his eyes as the teen gulped nervously. He then proceeded to do away with his boxers.. exposing his hardened, throbbing manhood to the pink-haired youth.

This left the woman completely and utterly speechless as this had been the first penis she had ever seen in her lifetime. Her heart began to race rapidly with the pink shade on her cheeks now darkening as red as a tomato once again.

 _He's..huge..._

Was he seriously planning on doing what she thought he was?

"I want... I want to take you!" He continued, yearning for the feeling of her from the inside.

... Yep, she thought correctly.

This was completely stepping the game up into an entirely new and different scale - a scale that she had never been on before. Yes, there were occasional hallucinations and desires... But that's all they were; mere hallucinations and desires!

But this wasn't another one of her fantasies... This was reality.

Was she prepared to finally lose her virginity? Well... Sakura supposed that, if it were to him - the man she loved so dearly and trusted with all her heart.. then she was more than ready.

With that in mind, Sakura spread her legs apart to allow an entrance for partner.

As the single was made, Naruto slowly made his way into the woman, beginning to feel the breathtaking sensation and tightness of her slippery walls while Sakura's body began to tremble from the pain...

Both of their virginities were since then no more.

"Fuck..." Panted Naruto, his hues glancing down at the kunoichi, "You feel so damn good and tight, Sakura-chan.."

"Shut up.. Moron..." Uttered out the woman in slight agony from the Uzumaki ravishing her womanhood.

"You ready?"

"Yes..."

The shinobi began to slowly use his hips to thrust both in and out of medical-nin as she fought through the pain, releasing a set of continous soft moans.

Sakura's legs tightly wrapped around Naruto's waist as he began to pick up the pace. He could tell from her expression that she was loving it, and likewise, so was he. Sounds were made as his pelvis slapped against her.

Neither of the young shinobi hadn't the clue that they could be satisfy each other to this extent before. It was definitely an amazing discovery.

The kunoichi's breasts began to jounce from her lover ramming into himself into her. She embraced the extraordinary feeling with her moans changing into screams of sheer pleasure, demanding to give her all that he had.

"Fuck..! Yes, Naruto, yes!"

Gladly following orders, Naruto leaned forward and deepened himself into the woman as he made immediate contact with her uterus. Sakura wrapped her arms around his neck, releasing blissful cries.

SHE was all HIS and HE was all HERS: That night was a night of ecstasy.

Moments later, Naruto would pull away from the woman and lay his back up against the mattress; silently gesturing the woman to come forward using his index finger.

Sakura understood the hint and crawled over towards her alluring boyfriend, remaining merely inches above the blonde as she gave off a seductive purr. She'd reach down and gently grab hold of his erection, aligning it perfectly with her entrance before smoothly pushing herself downward.

Naruto released a pleasurable groan once the female began to use her hips to slowly grind against him. Sakura curved her body back as strands from her now unkempt, pink hair covered her face entirely.

Her movements began to quicken; her hands placed on top of his chest while his own caressed her breasts. Their bodies glistened from the moonlight peaking in from the window.

Eventually, Sakura finally gave in and released an orgasm, screaming out a cry in the process: Her juices oozing out from within and unto him after her body flopped onto his in utter exhaustion.

"In..credible.." She panted, her head pressed against his chest.

"Yeah.. Looks like you gave in first, though, Sakura-chan.." Huffed and teased Naruto.

Sakura sat upward and gave him an amused smile.

"Congratulations, you've managed to go this long. But you aren't off the hook yet.."

"Whaddya mean?"

She then lowered herself downward and began to stroke him slowly, much to his surprise and enjoyment. The kunoichi wanted to pay him back from the pleasure he had given her earlier, and in doing so, she took his throbbing erection into her mouth before slowly bobbing her head up and down.

The Uzumaki began to moan uncontrollably from the sensation of the inside of her mouth: It felt fucking incredible and it only got better as she went on faster until he finally released.. without any warning, that is.

Naruto laid in awe before eventually realizing what he had done.

"S-Shit!" He panicked, "Sorry, Sakura-chan! It just felt too good, y'know!?"

Sakura sat up without a word and unexpectedly, swallowed the load.

"Tasty." She commented, giving off a playful wink to the baffled teen.

...

 _... Awesome._

 **~o~o~o~**

Sometime after, the newly couple decided to clean themselves off by sharing a soothing hot bath: One that they definitely needed.

Naruto once again reflected on the day and how it was FORTUNATELY changed from an almost worst into the most memorable day in his whole entire seventeen years of living. He had no one to thank but his former friend, now lover, Sakura for that: Not only did she rescue and give him the most exciting date over at Ichiraku Ramen, but also made his dreams become reality by not only becoming his girlfriend.. but unexpectedly taking away his virginity on the same day, as well. This was the first time that someone had loved him as much as his parents did, and Naruto was eternally grateful.

For Sakura, she finally found a sense of comfort in herself. She found the courage to confront her feelings and make something positive out of them. The Haruno believed that the day had surely been an eventful one, and was glad that she decided to go against heading over to the hot springs. She refused to think about how her day would've turned out had she actually gone; all she wanted to focus on was the now - spending the night with the love of her life.

 **~o~o~o~**

Eventually, the two were now prepared for sleep as the closely snuggled against each other in bed. Sakura rested her ahead against Naruto's chest as the blanket shielded their bodies.

"What a way to end the night.." Sakura uttered softly.

"Yep," Naruto yawned, "After all of that, I definitely need some sleep."

"Naruto..."

"Yeah?"

"I wanted to thank you."

He glanced down at her, raising a brow, "Thank me? For what?"

"For making this all of this possible, for being the reason why we're even able to enjoy days such as this... For ending the war and saving us all.. For existing and being who you are as a person."

The shinobi was left surprised from the sudden words from the woman.

"Thank you..." She continued, embracing him even closer as tears built up in her eyes.

Naruto formed a warmhearted grin and laughed quietly.

"Sakura-chan, you should thank yourself."

"Huh?" She glanced up, not understanding his words.

"It's because of you and everyone else that I was able to even make it this far, anyways. You, Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, Iruka-sensei, Konohamaru, Ero-sennin, Tsunade-obachan, Octopops, everyone! Without you guys, I don't know, nor do I wanna know where I'd be." He ensured before giving off a smirk, "Because thinking about a life without you all would be a scary one-ttebayo!"

Sakura was left speechless from his words.. She didn't know what to say: Tears of happiness began to stream down her cheeks.

"Don't say such things... You idiot.." The kunoichi sobbed, her face buried into his chest.

Naruto would take her into an embrace, respectfully allowing her moment.

 **~o~o~o~**

Minutes later, Naruto had finally fallen asleep as he sore like a child. Meanwhile, Sakura remained awake as his kind words echoed in her mind. She was grateful to have such a unselfish friend and lover like him.

Naruto was certainly like no other, and that's what made him unique and irreplaceable as a human being.

Sakura thought that it was just like him to never take the credit for his success; always thanking his comrades before anything else.

His actions aspired others to be just like him.. His word aspired others to follow him.

He certainly was Uzumaki Naruto.

Sakura's eyes slowly shut themselves closed as she began drift off into sleep.

 _Naruto... I love you._

* * *

 **Yoyo's END Note:** Well.. we've come to an end to the story. Hope you all enjoyed. This is actually the single most longest fic I've ever written and given the most dedication to. Just shows my admiration for the ship, I guess! (I probably won't do another long one like this for a long time at least..)

It is now 6 in the morning as I'm writing this, and I began this fic three days ago. Time to get my sleeping schedule back in place..

Thank you for reading and be sure to leave a review! :)


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